Nature recovery at a time of crisis
Viviane Doussy
Storrington and Arun Valley Sussex Wildlife Trust Regional Group
Who would have thought a Friday evening in our local village hall would be so be stimulating? The Storrington and Arun Valley Regional Group recently hosted a public event which proved to be hugely uplifting.
Our Chair, Sarah Abercromby, set the scene focussing on our group’s hands-on nature recovery projects, Green Spaces for Nature, Churchyards, Himalayan balsam removal and Swifts, illustrating our efforts to build wildlife-rich corridors.
Phil Huggins zoomed into Swifts, a species battling against the loss of suitable nesting sites and limited food resources. A Wilder Horsham District (WHD) grant has enabled us to put up nesting boxes at previously identified swift-roosting sites, in the hope that this will encourage successful breeding.
The WHD team of Richard Black and Steve Tillman described the 5-year partnership between the Sussex Wildlife Trust and Horsham District Council. Via a district-wide approach, WHD enables SWT to work with landowners and community groups like ours, to build ecological networks. We are proud to be part of this initiative, making our local activities count towards nature’s recovery.
Pulborough Parish Council provided an emotive talk setting out one of their key objectives: ‘to raise environmental awareness to protect and enhance our greenspaces and local bio-diversities’. This forms the foundation of their Climate Action Plan.
We thank Pulborough Parish Council for sponsoring the hall facilities, and also the generous individuals who donated to our group. To find out more about our SWT Regional Group, to participate in our projects and become part of a wilder future, please get in touch at [email protected].
What a buzzy evening, attracting nearly 90 locals! Display boards, hot drinks and fresh home-made cakes went a long way to spread a powerful sense of community. At this time of biodiversity and climate crisis, we all went home encouraged and re-inspired by our shared objectives for nature.
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